Never Again
by Notsogoodwithwords
Summary: The Inspector paused as he exited the room, back to Kanda. "I'm surprised Kanda," he said, voice very calm. "After the way you butchered Alma Karma as a child, I would have thought you'd sell out your new friends in a heartbeat…I guess some people just mean more than others." Pairings: LavixKanda, AllenxLenalee, MariexMiranda
1. Reopened Possibilities

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray man. I assure you, if I did, I would not be writing fan-fiction.

Summary: The Second Exorcist plan was closed after the Alma Karma incident and Kanda has long since buried his pain under a mask of sheer unpleasantness. But when things become desperate, and the Order considers reopening the Second Exorcist program, Kanda might have to reopen old wounds to protect his friends from becoming victims of the Second Exorcist program themselves.

Pairings: Lavi/Kanda, minor Allen/Lenalee, Marie/Miranda

Rated: M for language and some sexual content in later chapters.

Author's Note: I had been rereading the D. Gray Man Series and really wanted to try a longer fanfic instead of my usual one-shots. I decided with the new D. Gray Man chapter having been released, I would start posting chapters. I shall try and release one chapter a week, with a regular release date being on Saturday. Please review.

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Chapter one: Reopened Possibilities

 _"_ _Yu!" Alma plopped down next to Kanda, handing the younger second Exorcist a bowl of food. Well if you could call mayonnaise food. "Go on, eat up!" Alma encouraged Kanda, who stared at his bowl of mayo with disgust. "It's really good!"_

 _"_ _...You creep! This is_ not _food!" He yelled. This was what he got for letting Alma pick up lunch. Stupid brat!_

 _"_ _Yes it is! It's mayonnaise! Mayonnaise is a semi-solid dressing, which is made from egg yolk or the whole egg! Eggs are food, and therefore, mayonnaise is food too! Besides, it's not just mayonnaise," Alma added, somewhat defensively. "The chef cut up some chicken and mixed it in. Now eat!" He shoved the bowl closer to Kanda eagerly. Kanda stared at the bowl mutely, silently protesting. White chunks of chicken flesh coated in a slimy white substance filled the bowl. There was no way in hell he was eating that. "Please, Yu, it's really good!" Alma repeated his argument from earlier._

 _He turned his to look at Alma. "No way in-" he stopped as he got sight of Alma's face. Blood dripped from the corner the second Exorcist's mouth. "What the hell, Alma?" He grabbed Alma by the shoulders. "Why are you bleeding?" He looked frantically for any wounds._

 _"_ _Come on Yu! Let's eat together," the boy insisted, oblivious to the fact he was bleeding. Kanda brought his hand up to Alma's mouth, attempting to wipe away the blood, but only succeeded in smearing it across his friend's face._

 _"_ _It's alright, you're going to be okay Alma," he breathed, despite the panic building in his chest. "_

 _Something hard and cold struck him in the stomach._

 _Kanda looked down to see Alma's innocence protruding from belly._

 _"_ _What?" Kanda croaked, confused._

 _Alma merely smiled at Kanda, and grabbed the bowl off food of the table, ignoring the fact that he'd just stabbed Kanda. "We'll eat together, and then I'll kill you, Yu," A slender arm wrapped around Kanda's neck, pulling him close so Alma's mouth was right next to his ear. Alma whispered, joyful smile never leaving his face, "let's die together, Yu, alright?"_

Kanda jerked awake, breathing ragged, sitting up, back rigid. His hair stuck to the back of his neck and shoulder; his body was sticky with perspiration. Still taking in several deep breaths, he glanced around the room and then down at his stomach. There was nobody in the room; of course there would not be. There was no innocence in his stomach. _It was just a nightmare,_ he closed his eyes, trying to calm his breathing back to normal, _it_ _just a nightmare_. Yet, he couldn't quite shake the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

A soft child's voice spoke in the back of his head, " _You were having nightmares again, Yu?"_

 _Alma,_ he pushed away the image of Alma that had formed in his mind. His heart ached anyway. People thought that Kanda's heart couldn't ache; people thought he didn't have a heart at all. That was fine by him. He didn't want people to know he could hurt like he did.

After a few moments of silent contemplation, Kanda decided against trying to sleep again. He didn't know the exact time, it was still dark out, but if he had to guess sunrise wasn't too far off. So, like every morning, he dragged himself out of bed, and spent about five minutes looking for his hairbrush. From there, he spent about twenty minutes combing out snares and knots. It was a very long, and dull process, complicated further by the fact that occasionally Kanda had to put down the hairbrush and pick apart stubborn knots by hand. Sometimes Kanda thought it might be easier to just cut off all the excess hair. But he never did; so the hairbrush was a necessary evil.

It was a necessary evil that didn't take his mind off of Alma, or the sick feeling in his stomach. Such dull processes left nothing to do but to dwell on things that you didn't need to dwell upon. _Don't think about it,_ he snapped at himself. It was done, there nothing he could do about it.

The rest of the morning took less then ten minutes. He dressed, pulled on his jacket, and secured mugen at the waist. By that time, the sun was just barely coming up over the horizon. He took a moment to observe the golden sun as it rose.

It looked like it would be a good day. Warm at the very least. He'd have to watch out for Lavi then. He turned back to the door. The redhead had the worst habit of tracking down Kanda in the middle of his training, and proceeding to nap nearby. It was insanely irritating. He was just about to open the door when there was a soft knocking. _Damn it._

The Finder – who was obviously new to the Order – was unprepared for an annoyed Kanda to open the door. "What?" Kanda snapped. Nobody knocked on his door. Not unless it was _damn_ important. Important by Kanda's standards; not the Order's.

"Er..." The Finder stammering only grew worse under the look Kanda gave him. "Uh...the...um...er...Inspector," more stammering, followed by more glaring. "Um...er...ah...ACK!" Kanda grabbed the Finder by the collar of his uniform and lifted him up so he was eye level.

"Spit. It. Out."

"I-I-Inspector Leverrier has a-a-asked that you join him!" The Finder shrieked, flinging his arms in front of his face, as if to shield himself from Kanda's glare. Kanda grunted, considering interrogating the Finder on why Leverrier would want to see him. He threw the Finder away to the side instead, deciding it wasn't going to be worth his time to bother with the stuttering moron. The Finder for his part had enough sense to stay on the ground until after Kanda had left.

What did that bastard want? Kanda fumed to himself. The inspector was always stirring things up when he came to the Order, particularly with the other Exorcists. Every damn time he wrought devastation and confusion to their daily lives.

Lenalee avoided everybody but Kanda like the plague. Komui struggled with looking busy and maintaining control over his position, since Leverrier was frequently trying to undermine his authority. The dog, Howard Link, dragged the moyashi to visit the inspector, and what was more, that always caused the moyashi to fight with the inspector.

The only people Kanda couldn't really say that the inspector affected were the Bookmen. There was no dramatic change in behavior; Lavi still teased. The Bookman still hit Lavi. They were an island in an ocean of hurt feelings and old memories. He shook his head with a sigh.

Kanda had his own problems with the bastard. Most notably, the habit of Leverrier's to push Kanda's buttons.

He didn't bother to knock. Kanda rarely bothered to knock, the only real exceptions being for Lenalee. The only reason that exception had come into play was that Komui – even to Kanda – could be damn terrifying when it came to his sister. It was like he transformed into a completely different person; from kindly, if somewhat eccentric scientist to psychotic raving bastard with potentially lethal weapons.

"What?" Kanda scowled crankily.

Leverrier gave the raven haired Exorcist a disapproving frown, possibly feeling that Kanda owed him more respect. But the frown quickly turned into a smile. Perhaps smirk was a better word, because the inspector never smiled. Not in the sense that there was joy in it. In that way, he was like Kanda. The thought only made Kanda's scowl deepen. Leverrier gestured to the chair, "Have a seat," he said amiably enough.

Kanda didn't trust it. The inspector was only agreeable when he wanted something. "Che," He leaned against the doorway, having no intention to sit down. For a moment, nothing happened. Kanda did not move, and the inspector kept his hand gestured to the chair. A muscle in Kanda's jaw jumped. Leverrier didn't so much as blink. About a minute and a half passed. "Che," Kanda detached himself from the doorway.

"Shut the door behind you, if you will."

The door shut with a thunderous _bang_ and Kanda sat himself down on the chair, crossing his arms and slouching.

"Thank you very much. Would you like a slice of cake?"

The look Kanda gave him suggested he'd like to shove a slice of cake down Leverrier's throat. "No."

"Very well. Let's get down to business," that ever fake pleasant, bureaucratic smile was still present on Leverrier's face. Kanda's scowl only deepened in frustration. What sort of business did Leverrier have? Something unpleasant no doubt. Kanda couldn't help but think the Order would be a much better place – though still terrible undoubtedly – if Mugen and Leverrier acquainted themselves.

Lenalee would probably act mad, though Kanda was fairly sure that she'd be happy. Komui probably wouldn't have to spend so much time worrying about the other Exorcist's whenever Leverrier came around. That dog Link would probably have to leave the beansprout alone for a long while.

Everybody would probably be happier.

Of course, then Kanda would also probably be in huge trouble with the rest of the Order. He forced himself to remain calm. It would be better just to get this 'business' over with.

"How are you doing?" Kanda blinked at the sudden, unexpected question. He wasn't sure that counted as 'business.'

"What?" He barked, sure he had misunderstood.

"How are you doing?" It was the same question.

"What a stupid question. Fine." Kanda answered snappishly. This was _not_ important enough for Kanda to have to come here.

"Your healing ability? It is still functioning?" The hostility in the room automatically went up a few notches. Silence was the only answer. That and the sound of a deep, calming breath Kanda took to stop from murdering Leverrier. As it was, it was a very near thing. "Well?" Leverrier asked again.

Kanda wondered if the inspector realized exactly how perilous a game it was that he was playing.

"It's. Fine," Kanda bit out each word like it was poison.

"I see. And it's been functioning for the same almost ten years now?"

"I said it's fine!" Kanda snapped. He didn't want to really admit the fact that the healing ability had slowed down substantially. What had taken him hours at age nine now took at least a full day, maybe two. He mentally shook himself, focusing on the bastard's words. He promised himself vengeance for the man's curiosity.

"I need specifics," the words were crisp and the muscles in Kanda's jaw jump yet again.

"It works," Kanda's voice was cold as he uncrossed, and then crossed his arms again. The bastard most certainly did not need specifics. "What else do you need to know?"

"Does it still work effectively?"

"I'm not dead," Kanda pointed out, growing more agitated. "I'd say it's effective," he muttered. He looked utterly murderous.

"That's not the kind of answer I'm looking for," Leverrier said smoothly.

Kanda was about to snap back that it was going to be only answer that Leverrier was going to get, when he paused, unable to help himself. _What sort of answer was he looking for?_ Kanda couldn't think of one. Leverrier might have been a pain, and Kanda might have been rude, but Kanda had answered the questions honestly. It worked for Kanda; he didn't know the specifics, never really needed to know. He was beginning to think that might have been a mistake. "What sort of answer are you looking for?" He demanded after a moment.

"A more detailed one."

"Why?" Kanda was almost never curious about 'why.' Nothing good ever came after why. Absolutely nothing.

But he had a feeling he was going to need the answer to this 'why.' It was going to bite him in the ass otherwise.

"Let me just say we have a vested interest in your success as a second exorcist, and the potential good it could do for the other apostles of the Order," even as the inspector said it, the polite smile never left Leverrier's face.

For a moment, Kanda didn't understand the meaning behind the words being said. He'd never been good with politely twisted words, or the meaning behind them. He'd never much liked them either in truth; hence the blunt, sometimes brutal words he used. Well, that and he just didn't much care for people or their feelings. When the words did sink in, the understanding became painfully clear.

The silence continued, though the meaning in the silence had changed; from confusion to barely contained rage.

It was indeed a rare thing for Kanda to be so angry he could not roar his anger adequately. But the look in his eyes was more than enough to make up for the silence. It said very clearly, _I_ will _end you, if you don't say something to save your ass in the next ten seconds._

"Is something the matter, Kanda?" The fury in Kanda's eyes did not fade in the slightest when Leverrier said his name. He uncrossed his arms, and Aa hand drifted to mugen, not drawing the blade, but clenching around the hilt so tightly his knuckles turned white. It was only years, and years of meditation that kept Leverrier from being slaughtered.

"What the hell do you mean 'potential good,'" Kanda's rumble was that of a lion, ready to pounce on his prey. Death was the only possible punishment for those words. Had it been somebody else; Bak, Komui or somebody who would actually regret their actions, there might have been some leniency. But there was no remorse in the inspector's eyes.

"Just what it sounds like. There is a lot of potential good, to be found in your success," _success_? Kanda had heard the inspector say the word before. It hadn't really registered; it was such an absurd way to describe Kanda's life. It was a mockery of everything that they'd done to Kanda.

Kanda's fist slammed against the desk with enough force that the wood splintered and cracked, leaving a small crater in the desk.

Even the Inspector had to flinch at the sudden impact. "Success?!" Kanda roared his anger, standing up and knocking the chair to the floor. "Go to hell!" He grabbed at the desk, overturning it with ease. The Inspector just barely managed to get out of the way in order to avoid being crushed by the heavy oaken piece of furniture.

"We are not finished talking!" Leverrier yelled as Kanda headed towards the door, swearing.

"We are," Kanda snarled, slamming the door behind him. Much like the desk, the door shook, splintered and cracked from the force of it.

Damn the Order. Damn Leverrier. Damn them all.

And where the hell was that Finder?


	2. Reopened Bookman's Thoughts

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray man. I assure you, if I did, I would not be writing fan-fiction.

Summary: The Second Exorcist plan was closed after the Alma Karma incident and Kanda has long since buried his pain under a mask of sheer unpleasantness. But when things become desperate, and the Order considers reopening the Second Exorcist program, Kanda might have to reopen old wounds to protect his friends from becoming victims of the Second Exorcist program themselves.

Pairings: Lavi/Kanda, minor Allen/Lenalee, Marie/Miranda

Rated: M for language and some sexual content in later chapters.

Author's note: For all of my lovely reviewers, thank you, and thank you to my followers as well.

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Reopened: Bookman's thoughts

"'Ey, 'vi, pl'iss an eh 've 'or 'ngo?" Allen Walker looked over at the tall redhead hopefully. Lavi couldn't help but think that he resembled a puppy that was begging for a treat.

Lavi just stared at Allen as the boy asked for something. That much he understood. What he was asking for, Lavi had not the faintest idea. For almost a full ten seconds, the redhead tried desperately to understand his friend. After another few moments, Lavi shook his head with an amused smile spreading across his face. "I'm sorry, Allen, I can't understand what your saying with your mouth full," he finally admitted.

Allen looked like he had been shot, with how sad he looked. His face crumpled slightly, and shoulders slumped, as if wounded. "H-hey, don't look like that. Just swallow first," Lavi tried to sooth his friend.

He didn't understand how Allen Walker could create this type of effect on him. He was _supposed_ to be an impartial watcher. While he'd always been willing to act cheerful and help others out when needed, he'd never meant it before. With Allen Walker, he meant the help, and was pleased to offer it. It was similar to how he felt when he offered to help Lenalee with the coffee, or the joy he felt when teasing Komui. It was no longer just an act. It was real.

It was a burden and a hindrance to his job as bookman.

"I think what he said was 'Hey, Lavi, please can I have your dango?'" Lenalee suggested after a few moments of Allen still looking like he was in physical pain from Lavi's statement. Instantly, Allen Walker lit up when Lenalee spoke, nodding eagerly. Again he looked over at Lavi, eyes bright. Lavi sighed, and handed over the food with great reluctance. If Allen wasn't so thin for his age, he wouldn't have handed over his food.

He watched as Allen dug into the surrendered cuisine with gusto. Lavi knew from experience that in seconds there would be less than crumbs left.

God, for such a skinny thing, that boy could eat.

Lenalee smiled softly at Allen, who smiled back, cheeks puffed out like a chipmunks. Lavi raised an eyebrow at the two of them, leaning closer. The two caught Lavi staring, and quickly looked away from each other.

The junior bookman's smile widened slightly. Lavi had no idea how Komui hadn't realized the two of them were sleeping together. Not that Lavi was judging; that wasn't his job. Besides which, he'd slept with a fair share of both men and women. If anything, he was happy for them. Still, it was so blindingly obvious. He would have to be sure to be there when Komui found out.

It would be good history to record; a record of how Komui Lee had slaughtered Allen Walker, one of the Order's most promising Exorcist's, for deflowering his sister.

That was, he would need to record it, if Bookman didn't go through with his plan for the two of them to leave the Order. The smile on Lavi's face faltered for a half moment.

 _You're getting too attached to them. Perhaps it's time we consider leaving._ The old Panda's words echoed quietly in the back of Lavi's mind as he quickly rearranged the expression on his face so nobody could guess at his conflicted feelings.

A gentle hand tapped his shoulder. "M-May I sit here?" Miranda's timid voice broke through Lavi's thoughts. He glanced at the thin, pale woman, before he smiled back cheerfully.

"Sure," he said, scooting over and motioning the older woman to take a seat next to him. She glanced around the table nervously, before taking her seat, setting the tray down with a small _clang._

"Thank you," she said, and Lavi was struck for the hundredth time by how quiet Miranda was. He couldn't believe that she'd survived twenty-six years like had – loosing jobs, depressed and alone. Lavi had to say, if the Order was good for anybody, it was definitely Miranda. A job she couldn't get fired from, friends who were always trying to cheer her up.

And of course, there was also -

"Marie," Lavi yelled, seeing that the gentle-giant had appeared in the doorway of the cafeteria. He stood up, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Hey, Marie, come sit over here, okay!" He called. A few Finders glanced over at Lavi, before quickly going back to their meals. Lenalee and Allen didn't even bother to look up from there dinners. They were used to Lavi's occasional screams and demands of other Exorcists, scientists and finders to join them for dinner. It didn't cause any harm. Well...it occasionally caused harm when he demanded Kanda eat with them, but other than that, never.

The Bookman grinned, seeing Miranda's face turn a tomato red out of the corner of his eye. The woman was going to need a little push into the relationship. That was Lavi's opinion anyway. Of course, Lavi's developing opinions might be why Bookman was so intent on them leaving the Order.

He'd stopped observing. He was interfering. _One month Lavi. One month and if you can't show me that you're detached, we will leave._

Marie raised his hand to acknowledge that he'd heard, before going over to Jerry to Order his dinner before they sat with him. That really only left Kanda – everybody else was on a mission or otherwise indisposed of. He glanced around the cafeteria, to the spot where Kanda always sat unless dragged away by somebody.

It was empty.

It was odd. To be precise, it was rather alarming. Lavi had known Kanda for over three years. It had been three years of Kanda calling him names and screaming insults when Lavi pushed too far. He knew a good bit about Kanda from those years; and there was one thing in particular he'd learned.

Kanda was a creature of habit.

He ate the exact same meal, three times a day. Lavi wondered how the hell Kanda wasn't malnourished. He trained directly after each meal, and then meditated until it was time to eat again, or sleep. Kanda screamed bloody murder when his routine was interrupted, and was likely to beat the shit out of anybody whom he deemed to be at fault.

When the moody samurai ate, it was always at the same table, same seat. The only time that ever changed was when the Exorcist was on a mission. Even when Lavi or Lenalee occasionally intervened to force Kanda to socialize more, more often than not, everybody would end up needing to move to Kanda's table.

The man didn't like change.

 _Maybe this is what Bookman meant. Maybe I pay too much attention to everybody._ But wasn't that what Bookman did? Observe, think, discover? It wasn't Lavi's fault that Kanda was an extraordinarily strong, and interesting Exorcist. The moody bastard deserved to be in the history books, along with Allen, Lenalee and the others. Of course, in order for Lavi to record information about Kanda…he had to know where he was.

Which left the question _where the hell was he?_

"'Re 'ou onnaeat t'at, 'vi?" Lavi blinked hearing Allen asking another question.

He shook his head again, "Allen, I just told you, I can't understand you with your mouth full," he gently reminded the younger man.

"I think he said, 'are you going to eat that, Lavi?'" Lenalee translated for Allen, who nodded eagerly.

Lavi glanced down at his half eaten plate. "Uh, yeah, I was planning on eating it. Jerry's cooking is pretty good, ya know?" Lavi said, and again Allen looked depressed. "Hey! I gotta eat too, Allen!" Lavi protested the hurt look he was given.

"Yeah, Allen, be happy that Lavi gave you his dango," Lenalee chided Allen.

"Oh, are you still hungry Allen?" Miranda asked timidly, before spooning over some mashed potatoes onto Allen's plate. It looked as if Christmas had come early for Allen Walker. "Here, you can have some of mine," Miranda offered.

"'anks!" Allen exclaimed, digging in cheerfully. Lavi could only assume that Allen meant 'thanks.'

"Allen! Don't take Miranda's food!" Lenalee said, trying to stop the starving boy.

 _How can I leave all of them?_ Lavi wondered, a sharp stabbing pain in his chest. They were all so helpless – and none of them really knew about the world other than what the Order taught them. They knew death, and fear from Akuma, but did they really realize how dangerous people like Lavi were? People who would actively work to make you like them, then just leave? The sort of people who broke your heart, betrayed your trust?

"Lavi?" He blinked as Miranda asked him something, before turning his head to see Marie waiting patiently for him to make room.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly, moving so Marie would have a chance to sit next to Miranda. Miranda probably would never make a move for the giant, but Lavi was fairly certain that Marie would make a move after a while, once they'd known each other for a while longer. The man was not what Lavi would have called 'forward,' but sometimes moving slow and steady really was the way to go.

"Are you alright, Lavi? You seem a little distracted," Lenalee asked. Lavi watched out of the corner of his eye as Miranda and Marie smiled at each other. It amazed him how many people in the Order seemed to be finding love lately.

"No, I'm fine," Lavi assured Lenalee. "I was just thinking about my last mission." When Bookman gave him the ultimatum. _One month..._ That had been almost three days ago. Lavi should be avoiding everybody. But he couldn't quite do it. He couldn't pull himself away from anybody, let alone everybody. He didn't know how to anymore.

"Was it really hard?" Lenalee asked innocently.

"No, it was just long," Lavi said. He would have said more, but he heard a huge _crash_ , followed by a yowling, howl of pain. Everybody turned to see what was happening, though Lavi actually had a suspicion as to what had caused the yelling.

Sure enough, a young Finder was lying dazed on a broken table, and a very, very angry man was standing over him, gripping the Finder's shirt. _What the hell?_

Lavi couldn't say that he was surprised that Kanda was apparently beating the shit out of a Finder; it was a disturbingly regular occurrence for Kanda. But _usually_ Kanda had a reason. Not generally a _good_ reason, but something. Finders usually knew better than to talk to Kanda and provoke the angry man.

Whatever the case, there was usually some sort of buildup; yelling, screaming, cursing of some sort.

Judging by the looks on everybody's face, this had been pretty sudden. Normally, there was just a look of amusement or annoyance when Kanda started something like this. Today everybody just looked like they were astonished by the sudden violent display. Silence enveloped the cafeteria.

"Don't. Ever. Bother. Me. Again," the five words floated through the cafeteria, clear and menacing. Even Lavi shivered a little bit – though for once, the words weren't directed at him. Still, Lavi had to stop himself from apologizing to Kanda.

It was Allen who broke the silence – having finally swallowed his food. "Hey, Bakanda, let him go," and Lavi had to be amused with Allen. Of course the boy would swallow, if it meant that he could fight Kanda.

It was like the two were cat and mouse. Allen being a mouse who didn't seem to realize the danger he was in.

The devil's eyes landed on Allen, and the samurai released the Finder's shirt. Lavi had never seen somebody who'd just been smashed into a table crawl away so fast. _The head nurse will be thrilled;_ Lavi couldn't help but think as two other Finders pulled the first to safety. Allen pushed back his seat to walk over to Kanda.

Lavi couldn't help but sigh; he really thought that the two of them would have known better than to fight by now. Neither of them won, they both ended up with blooded noses and fists. The display frightened the Finders and the injuries set the Nurse into a psychotic frenzy.

Of course, it also pissed off Lenalee – who was already starting to look rather agitated.

Lavi had a feeling that look didn't bode well for Allen and Lenalee's relationship.

"What did that Finder do to you?" Allen demanded from Kanda. "Did he wake you from your beauty sleep?" The younger Exorcist smiled politely at Kanda, who looked much like a tornado ready to tear Allen limb from limb.

"Che. He disturbed me," Lavi couldn't help but feel that was a rather vague. Even for Kanda, it seemed a little vague.

"Yes," Allen agreed. Lavi had known the two of them for long enough to know it was not going to end there. "He did disturb you," Allen agreed again, "Disturbed you from your beauty sleep...girly," Allen prodded along Kanda's anger, like so few could. Still, Lavi couldn't help but think that Kanda looked off. Normally, when Kanda argued with Allen, he started off fairly calm, shoulders relaxed, legs apart, weight resting on the back left leg, hand merely touching Mugen's hilt and a darkly amused glint in his eye. The aggression almost always came as the conversation progressed from 'Bakanda,' to 'heartless son of a bitch, why are you so damn cold.' Violence came right after both men had lost their reason.

Today, Kanda started off tense. His jaw was locked, shoulder's tensed, and Mugen was already inching out of it's sheathe. The look in his eye was different too, it screamed _don't push it, bastard moyashi._

"You want to push it, moyashi?" Kanda's voice echoed Lavi's thoughts. The Bookman couldn't help but be pleased that his observational skills had not dulled, even if he had grown perhaps too attached.

"Why would I need to push you...girly," Allen countered. Lavi stood up at the same time that Lenalee did. Lenalee, Lavi assumed, was going to tell Allen and Kanda to cut it out (and probably berate Allen later for being such a pain in Kanda's ass.) Lavi was getting up for the simple reason that it looked like Kanda might actually kill somebody today – and Allen was endanger of becoming 'somebody.'

"Yu!" Lavi called cheerfully, striding over to 'Yu' in five and a half large strides. "Where have you been? I've been looking for you!" He cried, throwing an arm around Kanda and bumping Kanda just a little bit, so he wouldn't have direct access to Allen.

"None of your business; and _do not call me that!_ " Kanda snarled, pushing Lavi. The redhead staggered back, surprised at the ferocity of the push. Another oddity; usually he had to call Kanda by his first name, six, or seven times before the slightly shorter man would push him. Eight for Kanda to shove him _that_ hard.

"Eh, Yu, is something wrong?" Lavi asked curiously as he straightened himself back up.

The impact of Kanda's fist connecting with Lavi's jaw was unexpected, and rather painful. A field of white and red swept over Lavi's vision, and from one moment to the next, Lavi was standing, and the next he was crumpled on the ground. "Lavi!" He heard Lenalee shriek, apparently as surprised at Kanda's aggression as Lavi. "Kanda! That was uncalled for! You should apologize to Lavi. Now!" Lenalee said, helping up Lavi – who was still struggling with seeing stars dancing in his field of vision.

"Che, I told him not to call me that."

"Kanda!" Lenalee yelled, and Lavi watched as Kanda stalked out of the cafeteria, without ordering anything. _What the hell happened to him?_


	3. Reopened Building Tensions

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray man. I assure you, if I did, I would not be writing fan-fiction.

Summary: The Second Exorcist plan was closed after the Alma Karma incident and Kanda has long since buried his pain under a mask of sheer unpleasantness. But when things become desperate, and the Order considers reopening the Second Exorcist program, Kanda might have to reopen old wounds to protect his friends from becoming victims of the Second Exorcist program themselves.

Pairings: Lavi/Kanda, minor Allen/Lenalee, Marie/Miranda

Rated: M for language and some sexual content in later chapters.

Author's Note: I know I promised releases on Saturday's regularly, but some unexpected circumstances have come up, and I will be unavailable this Saturday. I decided to post a day early, rather than a day late. Hopefully this does not disappoint you all too greatly. Please review. Your words of support, and your critiques are greatly appreciated.

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Chapter three: Reopened Building Tensions

A single emerald eye stared over at a dark haired male. The Finders had given Kanda ample space, even more so than usual. The result was you could actually see a ragged circle formed around Kanda, as if he had the plague.

Thank God Kanda didn't actually have the plague; it would have been terrible in Lavi's opinion, to have abscesses and black boils marring such a pretty face. Though the scowl that currently decorated Kanda's face certainly didn't make Kanda look very 'pretty.'

"Lavi?"

To say that Kanda had continued to act erratically over the past four days was a huge understatement. At least, that was Lavi's opinion; nobody else seemed to notice. To quote Lenalee, 'Kanda's always been like that.'

Lavi knew better. Kanda was usually crabby it was true. His anger had always been on the edge of extreme end, and when Kanda wasn't angry, he generally brooded. That hadn't changed. But there was a difference lately.

Normally, Kanda's anger had four stages: superficial annoyance, aggressive, _extremely_ aggressive, and dangerous.

He would swear and curse the objects of his frustrations first. If that didn't work, he turned to threats, which generally included claims of death or serious bodily harm; if pushed even further, he'd swing Mugen. It was only after, that violence became a real and viable threat.

But for the past few days, there had been no in-between step; he went from silence to beating the shit out of people within seconds. He fought with everybody, Finders, Scientists…Allen. It had taken Lenalee, Marie, and Lavi himself to pry them off of each other.

It felt like the Order had started housing an angry bear.

"Lavi. Can you hear me, Lavi,?"

Lavi had near perfect memory; he knew that Kanda wasn't usually like…this.

For the most part, Kanda had always been fairly relaxed at the Order. Not all of the time of course. After his fights with Allen, he was always stiff and his hands would clench and unclench. When Tiedoll got too close, acted too fatherly or started to cry, the same thing would happened, as well as when Lavi called him by his first name. But for the most part, if Kanda was left alone and everybody was fairly quiet, he would sit quietly by himself, expression not quite happy, but not angry either; he was merely calm.

He had been anything but the last few days.

"Hey, Lavi, I think Lenalee's talking to you."

In the past two weeks, Lavi hadn't seen Kanda do anything but drum his fingers against Mugen's hilt, clench his fists and glare off into the distance. While that last part wasn't that unusual, it seemed…different than usual. Lavi couldn't quite put his finger on it though. He shook his head and looked away from where the Japanese man was sitting. It didn't help much though; Lavi's perfect memory wouldn't let him stop seeing Kanda just sitting there, ignoring the bowl of soba in front of him.

"Lenalee, I don't think he's listening."

"I can see that, Allen!"

 _What the hell is wrong with him?_ Lavi shook his head again, feeling frustrated. He wanted to know why Kanda was so damn upset. It was in Lavi's nature to want to know everything; and for the most part, since becoming a Bookman, he got to know whatever he wanted to know.

"Lavi!"

For some reason, this was completely untrue when it came to Kanda. Understanding the reasons behind every day actions with Kanda was like pulling a tooth from a tiger. Actually understanding anything meaningful about Kanda was impossible. Lavi would have had better luck with the tiger. It was driving him crazy damn it!

"LAVI!"

The redhead blinked, looking over at Lenalee. "Oh, hey," he said in surprise. "When did you get here?" He asked, resisting the urge to glance back over at Kanda.

"Lavi, I've been here since you sat down," Lenalee said patiently, though Lavi had the feeling that she was annoyed about something. Her eye didn't usually twitch like that. "What are you staring at anyway?" she asked curiously.

"I'm not staring at anything," Lavi muttered, looking down at his dinner that consisted of a platter of grilled meat, potatoes, carrots and asparagus. He wasn't all that crazy about the vegetables, but the Junior Bookman couldn't justify ordering just a plate of plain meat.

Allen snagged a piece of Lavi's dinner stuffing it in his mouth. Normally, Lavi would have said something, but the redhead was realizing that he was about to have another problem. He watched as Lenalee's eyes drifted to where he'd been staring. Her eyes settled onto the samurai and he watched her eyes sharpen.

Shit.

He watched as the girl flickered her eyes back at Lavi, then and Kanda again. _Shit._ Lenalee always had been the sort to get the wrong idea. He hesitated, glancing between Lenalee, Allen and Kanda. There was no way in hell that he was going to let Lenalee continue her line of reasoning…and Lavi could only think of one way to stop it.

Lavi suddenly leaned forwardly, placing his chin on his hands, a wicked smile brightening his face. His green eye sharped as if he had noticed something interesting. "Eh, Lenelee, you keep staring Kanda. Are you interested in him?" he asked curiously.

Allen's head whipped up before looked at Lenalee, swallowing the meat he'd filched from Lavi's plate. "You're interested in Kanda?" he asked and Lavi could hear the pure panic in the albino's voice.

"I am not!" Lenalee protested, obviously trying to sooth her lover's ego without it being too obvious. After all, nobody else was supposed to know that they were going out. Which just made it so damn easy to toy with them.

"Then why do you keep staring over at Kanda?" Lavi pressed, partly to draw attention away from him, and partly because this was actually considerably funnier than he had thought it would be. The expression on Allen's face was priceless.

"Because," Lenalee spluttered, obviously having been unprepared for Lavi's tactics. Of course, very few people were prepared for his tactics. "Because, because," she stammered.

"I knew it!" Allen said, looking extremely agitated. "I knew you liked him! What do you see in that jerk anyway?" He demanded.

"I don't see anything in Kanda!"

Lavi jumped in again, "But you're always meditating with him. You have got to like him a little bit, don't you?"

Allen stared at Lenalee in dismay. "You _do_ like Kanda. It's because he's taller than me, isn't it?" he demanded.

"Allen, shhh," she said, glancing over at Lavi, to make sure that he hadn't noticed the slip. He had of course, but he had the decency not to say so. They would tell him when they were ready to. Plus, the fight was too damn entertaining. His ears pricked as she lowered her voice to sooth Allen. "I don't like Kanda because he's tall," she muttered.

"So then why do you like Kanda?" Allen hissed at Lenalee.

"I do _not_ like Kanda! Stop being so insecure, Allen!"

Lavi smiled as the two of them started to bicker, eyes glancing over at Kanda, who was still staring out the window, eyes far away and scowl deepening with each passing minute. Lavi's smile dropped a notch. Allen and Lenalee's fight disappeared into background noise as he stared at Kanda. _What's bothering you, Yu?_

* * *

Kanda's fingers drummed against the tabletop growling; it was a low rumble that filled his chest and echoed around the empty table. He could still hear Leverrier's words echoing in his head, _we have a vested interest in your success as a second exorcist_.

Success…they hadn't been so ready to call it a success after he'd killed Alma.

 _The CROW kept a firm hand on Kanda's shoulder. Not that Kanda could have run very far with the binding spell. His eyes drifted to all of the men who sat along the table. They all stared back at him with various expressions; disgust was on the majority of their faces, followed by fear._

 _Kanda missed Edgar. At least the scientist hadn't made him feel like a test subject. Though by now even, Kanda had figured out that was all he'd been. A godforsaken experiment that Kanda couldn't believe the Church had sanctioned. An experiment that had forced him to endure almost a year painful experiments and ended with him murdering his best friend._

 _He wouldn't have blamed them for voting to have him euthanized. He wouldn't let them of course, but he would have understood._ Maybe you should let them… _a small voice whispered inside his head,_ you deserve it. You killed Alma!

 _His mind flashed back to the bloody body that had landed at his feet, and the broken eyes that had stared up at him. He swallowed, and shook his head to clear his away the voice._

You made your choice, _he reminded himself. He'd killed Alma; he didn't get to choose anymore. He had to find her before he could die. No matter how long it took._

 _"_ _Is this it?" The first one asked._

 _Is that_ 'it?' _Fuck those bastards. He was still a human._

 _"_ _This is it," the CROW confirmed, pushing Kanda a little closer to everybody. Kanda scowled but said nothing, instead looking at his shoes. Still, he had the sense not to say a word. He was obviously in enough trouble; he didn't need his smart mouth to get him into anymore trouble._

 _"_ _It's rather small," one man observed, eyeing Kanda. "Did it really kill the other one?"_

 _The CROW nodded silently, and Kanda continued to stare at his shoes._ See, they think you're a monster too, _the voice whispered in his head again._

 _"_ _So he's dangerous then?" A voice said quietly. A tall man, dressed sharply, with a small mustache above his lip. Kanda rather thought he looked like a toad; all he was missing were some warts._

 _"_ _He would have to be to," Somebody else commented and Kanda started to chew the inside of cheek._

 _"_ _It's pretty durable though, that is a desirable treat in an Exorcist…"_

 _"_ _Who would we get to teach it? It kills people, nobody is going to want it."_

 _"_ _We wouldn't have to tell anybody. It is need to know information."_

 _"What? Don't you think they'd notice its strength? I heard that it threw one of the scientist through the wall!"_

 _"_ _Don't talk about him that way!" Kanda was surprised to here Renee speak up. He'd thought that Alma had killed her too…he must have missed a few of them._ Why'd you have to kill them? We could have gone away together, someplace far away. Someplace without any innocence... _Kanda closed his eyes again. It was too late now._

 _"_ _Don't talk about it that way? It doesn't even qualify as human."_

 _"_ _It is dangerous though...maybe we shouldn't talk about this in front of it. It might go off like the other one, Alma."_

 _"_ _That would be a good idea," the sharply dressed man nodded his consent. He signaled to the CROW to take him away._

 _The CROW nodded shortly, grabbing Kanda again by his shoulder, just as the door banged open. "Sorry I'm late!" Kanda turned his head to see a young man with a pale head of gold hair. He blinked; for a moment, he looked just like Edgar. But as he looked more closely, he realized that this person was obviously not the same as Edgar. Though…huh, he was pretty sure that he had seen the person before._

 _Was he with that giant of a man named Marie? Kanda studied him for a moment._

 _"_ _What is the meaning of your tardiness, Mr. Chang?" The sharply dressed man again spoke, lips turned down in a sharp frown._

 _Chang…that was Edgar's last name, wasn't it? A light bulb suddenly went off in Kanda's head. Edgar had said he was a father, so that…made this boy his son? Twi had mentioned the name once…Bak!_

What a stupid name _, Kanda mused._

 _"_ _I apologize Inspector Leverrier. I was searching for the General," Bak answered, as another man entered the room. He was a tall man with wiry gray hair and bushy mustache. He'd seen a lot of Scientist's, but he didn't think he'd seen any with such untidy hair or thick glasses for that matter. "Thank you again for coming, General; I know you haven't wanted to leave Marie," Marie? Was he still alive?_

 _He had thought that Alma had killed the gentle giant during the rampage._

 _"_ _It's not a problem," The man with bushy hair glasses nodded to the room at large. His eyes landed on Kanda, "Is this him?" he asked quietly._

 _"_ _Yeah, that's Yu," Bak said, and Kanda watched as Tiedoll crossed over to him, feeling a little bit nervous. The General bent down so their eyes were level._

 _"_ _Thank you," Tiedoll said quietly. Kanda looked startled, and automatically shifted his eyes back and forth to make sure that he wasn't talking to somebody else. "Marie told me that you saved him. Thank you for that," and Kanda watched in mild horror as the General's eyes startled tear up. He let out a small yelp as large arms suddenly wrapped around him, pulling him into suffocating hug._

 _"_ _Ack," He grunted, arms pinned to his side. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he felt something wet drip onto his back. Was this man crying on him? "Don't do that." He complained, which made the man cry harder. Not sure what else to do, he did his best to pat the man's back – which was hard to do with his arms pinned to his side._

 _What the hell was with this man? Nobody hugged him like that! Why was he doing that? Even Alma was easier to comfort then this idiot._

 _Leverrier looked annoyed and gestured to the CROW who immediately started to rip Kanda way from the General. Immediately afterward Kanda felt himself jerked back to the General, a firm hand on his shoulder keeping him in place. "Where are you taking this boy?" The General asked, and Kanda was surprised to hear some steal underneath the pleasant voice._

 _"_ _We don't want it in the meeting while we talk," That was somebody else._

 _"_ _What is there to talk about? He has innocence, he is an Exorcist," Tiedoll said and Kanda looked up surprise_

 _"_ _Who would teach him how to use it?" That was Leverrier, face twisted in an annoyed scowl._

 _"_ _I would," Tiedoll said without any hesitation. Kanda stared up at Tiedoll, surprised at his lack of hesitation. Hadn't he heard what he'd done to Alma? Why wasn't he scared of him?_

 _Instantly, muttering filled the room._

 _"_ _Are you crazy?"_

 _"_ _It's dangerous!"_

 _"_ _It'll kill you!"_

 _Tiedoll was calm in the face of the harsh words. "He's a child and an Exorcist; he needs somebody to help guide him."_

 _There was silence in the room, though Kanda did not miss the looks everybody gave each other. "I will take full responsibility for this boy. And since your primary objection is that you don't have teacher, this meeting has nothing else to discuss, correct," he looked over to see Bak speaking, a semi smile across his lips._

 _There was silence, before Leverrier nodded. "Get it out of my sight," He said dismissively, and Kanda felt himself being pulled out of the room by his hand._

 _"_ _Come on, Yu," Tiedoll said, continuing to pull at the young Japanese boy. Kanda hesitated, before hurrying after the man. The instant the door shut, he watched as both of the older men's shoulders slumped. The two of them leaned against a wall, why Kanda watched, still wary of some sort of trick._

 _Nobody treated him like this; nobody treated him with much niceness. Yet, he was forced to shift his eyes to the hand that landed on his shoulder._

 _"_ _That was close," Bak said quietly, wiping at his forehead._

 _"_ _Yes," Tiedoll agreed, still holding onto Kanda's shoulder. Kanda continued to stare at the hand, unsure as to why it was there. "I didn't think it would be so easy." He looked down at Kanda, "Are you alright, Yu?"_

 _Kanda looked at him in surprise, before scowling. "Don't call me that," He grumbled, before shifting the hand away in irritation. "Don't touch me either!"_

 _The bushy haired man smiled, and didn't say anything about his hand being pushed away. "Oh? Do you not like that name?"_

 _"_ _Well…no," Kanda was actually very fond of the name. Alma had told it to him. But it was an old name, from another life that was long since passed. He was somebody new now, and Alma was gone._

 _"_ _So you like the name?_

 _"_ _Well, yeah," it was his name of course he liked it. "But that isn't the point…" Kanda tried to explain, but found that he was lacking the words to express himself. He was surprised when the man ruffled his hair again._

 _"_ _It's alright, you don't have to give a reason if you don't want to," The General continued to ruffle his hair and Kanda scowled, trying escape._

 _"_ _I said, don't touch me either!"_

 _"_ _What name would you like go by," The blond Edgar-look-a-like spoke name._

 _"_ _Um…" Kanda scratched his head. He didn't know; he never got to pick things. Everybody had always told him what to do; when to get up, when to go to bed, when he was supposed to eat…._

 _"_ _How about…_ _Akira_ or _Kōda?" Bak asked him._

 _"_ _Those are stupid names!" Kanda snapped at the help. Those sounded terrible; and girly!_

 _Bak looked rather flustered. "Um...How about…Kanda?"_

 _"_ _Kanda?" It didn't sound terrible, but still…_

 _"_ _It sounds like a good name to me. You'll need a last name anyway," Tiedoll observed. "Don't you like it?"_

 _"_ _No. Kanda's fine."_

 _"_ _I'm glad you like it, Yu."_

 _"_ _I just told you not to call me that, damn it!_

 _"_ _You're my apprentice now, it's only natural that I call you by your first name, Yu."_

 _Kanda looked over at Edgar/Bak uneasily. The young man shrugged though he was smiling, "He's kind of stubborn. I'd just go with it."_

"Hey, Yu," Kanda jerked as a familiar voice penetrated his voice thoughts and a warm hand touched his shoulder.

"What?" He snapped, slapping away the hand furiously.

"Hey, relax! I was just checking to see if you were okay, Yu. You've been staring at the window for almost thirty minutes."

"I'm fine. Leave," he snarled.

The eye-patch boy hesitated. "Go!" Kanda growled. "Now!

Lavi rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'm leaving. Glad to see you're fine," The redhead waved goodbye. "Goodnight, Yu."

"Whatever."

* * *

Lavi was more than halfway to his room when he realized that Kanda hadn't chewed him out for calling him Yu.

 _Something must really be bothering him…_ He mused, opening his door. He glanced over to see Bookman hunched over book, leafing through his pages.

"You were gone a long time," the bookman noted, not looking up.

"I was…observing something," Lavi said, giving the old man a small smile.

The Bookman stared over at Lavi, and the Junior bookman could actually feel the old man's disapproval. _You're too attached,_ Lavi could almost hear the words the Panda's words. Lavi didn't blame him. "…Three more weeks Lavi," he said, before looking down at his book again.

Lavi waved at the old man, "Yeah, yeah, I know," he said, picking up one of the books that were on the floor, and flipping to the last page he'd read. He flopped himself over onto his bed, trying to pay attention to the words, but failing rather miserably.

 _Three weeks…._ Lavi closed his eye.

 _I'm screwed._


	4. Reopened Talks

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray man. I assure you, if I did, I would not be writing fan-fiction.

Summary: The Second Exorcist plan was closed after the Alma Karma incident and Kanda has long since buried his pain under a mask of sheer unpleasantness. But when things become desperate, and the Order considers reopening the Second Exorcist program, Kanda might have to reopen old wounds to protect his friends from becoming victims of the Second Exorcist program themselves.

Pairings: Lavi/Kanda, minor Allen/Lenalee, Marie/Miranda

Rated: M for language and some sexual content in later chapters.

Author's Note: And here is this week's chapter. Please remember to review.

* * *

Chapter three: Reopened Talks

"Bak," Kanda's voice cut through the air, just as sharp as Mugen. The blond felt every hair on the back of his neck raise and he stopped dead in his tracks. "What are you doing here," the samurai's voice right behind him, so close that Bak could actually feel the hot breath on his neck.

 _Damn it,_ Bak spun around, shame written all over his face. He hadn't even heard Kanda come up behind him! _He can be like a cat when he wants to._

"Kanda," he said, dragging a fake smile onto his face, and cursing God, Leverrier, and everybody else who had put him in this situation. "I was just coming to see how everybody was doing…haha," he trailed off into a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. Did it sound like he was lying? It sounded like a lie. Could Kanda hear it in his voice?

The idea sent a bolt of panic down Bak's spine. Kanda had never been really very tolerant of liars.

"Hmph," Kanda crossed his arms, staring at Bak. It screamed that he suspected Bak was up to something.

Bak looked up at the ceiling to avoid the chilling gaze. _He knows,_ Bak shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot at the thought. _He knows we're talking about reopening the second Exorcist program. He's pissed._

"Che. Damn slacker," The Exorcist shook his head in apparent disgust, unable to decide if Bak was lying.

The Asian Scientist immediately took the opening. He laughed again, rubbing the back of his head with a smile. "Well, it's so boring at the Asian Branch," He said, continuing on with his lie, even managing to make eye contact with Kanda again for a moment.

It was a mistake.

Immediately, the Second Exorcist's eyes sharpened, like an animal smelling fear. "Che. You're talking about it again," there was no question there; it was merely a statement.

 _How does he do that?_ Bak wondered, knowing he'd probably never know. Kanda had always been more instinctual then smart; there probably wasn't any logic or reasoning to the statement. The Japanese man just _knew._

"Yes," Bak admitted. He didn't want Kanda to beat the truth out of him. "Everyone is already here," He confessed, glancing down the hall. When he turned back, he realized that Kanda's jaw had clenched. The tension rolling off of the Japanese would have probably killed a small rabbit with its intensity. He hesitated, before reaching a hand over to touch Kanda's shoulder, in a semi-comforting manor. "Don't worry. Komui and I won't let it happen," he said firmly, to hopefully sooth Kanda.

"…I doubt you can," was all Kanda said. For a moment, there was heavy silence. Then Kanda spoke again, "Do what you have to do. You people always do," he said, shaking off Bak's hand and striding down the hall.

* * *

Bak sat, staring at the documents that had been laid out in front of him, packaged neatly in two folders.

 _Alma Karma. Yu Kanda._

His fingers drummed against the desk, teeth clenched so tightly it was giving him a migraine. An identical copy of the folders lay in front of the other branch members. There were photos, photos that would have made anybody sick. The first photo was of two young boys, one with a smile that was like the sun, despite the blood on his arms and legs. The second boy had a face like an angel's, marred only by a scowl that had to be a devil's. There was blood on that boy too, and more of it. It ran in rivers down his chest and stomach. Alma Karma, and Yu Kanda.

 _Do what you have to do_ , Kanda's words echoed in the back of Bak's head. _You people always do._

Had his parents felt like they had to do this? Had they felt like harming those boys had been something that needed to be done? Had torturing those boys been a necessity for his mother? Had experimentation on living, breathing, _children_ so been important for his father?

 _You people always do._

Bak shook his head. Whatever his parents had thought, he knew what needed to be done.

 _Do what you have to do._

The first photos of each boy were bad.

The ones that came after were much worse. One showed a bloody body on the ground; had it not been clearly labeled at the bottom of the page, it would have been impossible to tell whose. _Alma Karma._ Another photo was just of an arm, attached just barely attached at the elbow by skin and a few tendons. _Yu Kanda._ All of the photos were the same; blood, bone, broken flesh...

The results of Alma Karma's rampage.

Yet, only three of the six people in the room looked particularly agitated. "Why the hell are we even talking about this?" Bak demanded, slamming the folder shut, unable to look at it anymore.

Leverrier smiled, and pointedly ignored the question, watching as the others looked over the files.

"It's interesting," Louis Fermi was the next one who spoke. Bak whipped his head around to glare at the Middle Eastern Branch Leader. The file on his desk was flipped open to a picture of Alma. The normally smiling face was blank, and the young boy's eyes were vacant, probably imaging that he was in a better place. It was one of the most disturbing pictures that Bak had ever seen. Bak opened his mouth to interrupt – to protest that it was not interesting at all - but a tug on his sleeve stopped him. He looked down, to see Komui staring intently at Louis.

Bak swallowed his words and folded his arms across his chest, muttering. Bastards; every last one of them!

"It's interesting, but the results are obviously inconsistent. Maybe if there had been more successes in the past it would be a viable option, but as of right now it looks like it would be just a waste of resources," the scientist said.

There was one other part to it. It was wrong, _horribly, horribly_ wrong. But as far as Bak could tell, the Middle Eastern Branch chief didn't care about that. The Asian branch leader would have words with Fermi once this meeting was done. During the meeting if his temper was pushed much further.

"I agree," Andrew Nansen chimed in. "It would only be worth pursing if the results were more clear cut. Right now, it's an interesting concept at best. Not worth really talking about."

Komui nodded along was well, looking strained. "There doesn't seem to be any," Komui cleared his throat, obviously struggling with the lack of morality in his words, "Benefit." Bak scowled, hating the words, but knowing that Komui had to be objective in his words. These were scientists here; they dealt almost exclusively with facts. Results were key; feelings were not.

Bak grit his teeth.

Renny spoke up, next, also looking agitated. "Besides which, we already spoke about this _after_ the incident, nine years ago. We already decided that the Second Exorcist experiment was a disaster, and that it was best to shut it down. Nothing has changed," she pointed out. Bak suddenly remembered that her father had been killed in the aftermath of Alma's rage, along with his own parents.

Leverrier continued to smile, "A lot has changed," he said very calmly.

"Like what?" Bak demanded, continuing to look restless. The whole conversation was insane. There was nothing that had changed. Even if something had changed, there was no reason to be talking about this; nothing in the world could change the fact that what had been done to those boys was evil.

The fake smile never left Leverrier's face. "Kazana Reed, Chalker Laboun," He started off.

"What he hell are you talking about?" Bak demanded.

"Tina Spark," Leverrier's voice rose over Bak's, "Gwen Flail, Sol Galen, Kevin Yeegar, Daisya Berry and Suman Dark. We have lost eight Exorcist's; one of them a General, in less than one year."

There was an intense silence in the room as that sunk in. "We lost...that many?" it was Renny who spoke. Nobody had been unaware that many lives had been lost over the past year, but it was still an incredible number. Eight lives in less than a year. Not even counting finders. But that wasn't an excuse.

"We still can't reopen that experiment again," Bak said, aiming to shut down this line of conversation as quickly as possible. "We've already burned the bodies. They're at rest now; we couldn't use them if we wanted to," And they didn't want to. Bak didn't want to anyway.

"It doesn't matter. More Exorcists will die; we need to make sure that we have resources to use them after death." Bak could see that Leverrier's silver tongue was having an effect on the others in the room. The effect was particularly visible on the Middle Eastern Branch chief and the Oceanian Branch chief. The next words hit even harder; "We are already endanger of loosing more."

At this, it was Komui who looked up, and Bak swallowed, knowing the influence that the words were having on Komui. His sister was an Exorcist, his only family…and she was in danger of dying every moment of every day. The last thing that Komui would want was for Lenalee to be forced into the Second Exorcist program.

But at the same time, more people like Kanda around would reduce Exorcist's like Lenalee's risk.

Bak scowled; this whole damn conversation was ridiculous. "So what? Shall we turn everybody into Seconds and just be done with it then?" He asked sarcastically, and was instantly gratified with a look of shame on Komui's face.

Levrrier turned to Bak, face expressionless. Bak had a feeling that was exactly what the Inspector wanted to do to the Exorcists. It chilled him to the bone. "I didn't say that," he said slowly, deliberately. Bak still wasn't sure that he believed him. "My point is, we need to keep our numbers up."

"And reopening the Second Exorcist program is the best way to do that?" Bak snapped.

Leverrier smirked at Bak, something that made the blonde's blood boil. "Yes. Reopening the Second Exorcist program would be a way to keep our numbers relatively stable. By giving them the same advantages in death as Yu Kanda, Exorcist's would be able to serve for longer periods of time."

"But-" Bak started to protest.

"If you'll look back at page thirty-four in your folder," he instructed, ignoring Bak. Bak hesitated, before reluctantly doing as told, feeling that he wasn't going to get anywhere with Leverrier just yet.

He was surprised to see that it was another photo of Kanda. Or more accurately, he was surprised to see that it was a _recent_ picture of Kanda, taken only a year ago. He was wearing one of the older models of the uniform and was smirking at something.

It had been taken on Kanda's eighteenth birthday, Bak remembered. It had been a disaster of a day for everybody who wasn't Kanda. Lenalee had baked a cake; Kanda had refused to eat it, no matter how much she begged him to try it. In fact, the cake had ended up splattered against a wall, if he remembered correctly. Lavi had bought the man a present, which had been destroyed in Kanda's fit of rage when the redhead had started off with 'I brought you something, Yu.' He'd roared curses at Tiedoll when the General had called him son, vehemently denying that they were family, something that Tiedoll had brushed off with a smile. That had only served to infuriate Kanda more. He'd fought with the Finders over trivial things, and yelled at the Scientists for causing trouble with their experiments, before choosing to eat his dinner in his usual seat: away from everybody else.

But when asked for a picture, he'd just smirked. "If it will get you all to leave me the hell alone," he had said, eyes glimmering. Bak had never shook the feeling that Kanda had been very amused at the efforts that had taken place that day, if he hadn't outright enjoyed it.

"That is Yu Kanda," Leverrier, voice dripping like honey. "He's been with the Order for almost ten years now," Bak's jaw clenched.

"We know who he is," the Asian Branch director ground out.

He was ignored again.

"He his physically fit, healthy, and an excellent Exorcist," Leverrier continued to wrap his terrible words in silk and bows. "He has taken on over three-hundred, sixty-nine missions to eradicate Akuma of varying levels, or retrieve innocence. He has been hospitalized only twenty-one times for injuries of varying degree; that is just a little over twice a year. His average time spent in the hospital; two days," Bak was struck at how the inspector could twist facts so politely.

Hospitalized twenty-one times, since he'd started taking on missions. Not counting the hundreds of times that the boys had been left to recover on their own. Or the injuries he refused to have looked at.

"If you'll take a look at the other Exorcist's statistics at the back of your folder," Bak unenthusiastically flipped the folder to the back. He was instantly assaulted by rows of tiny numbers and columns, all of them residing next to an Exorcist's name.

"You'll notice that most Exorcists are hospitalized an average of four times a year. Combined with the fact that the average time spent in the hospital is at least a week, it becomes apparent that Kanda's regenerative ability, as well as additional strength as a Second Exorcist have benefited not only the Order greatly, but himself as well." Bak's face went from _agitated_ pink, to about to _erupting-volcano_ red. The only good thing about it was that the hives were starting to blend in with him complexion.

"Excuse me," Bak started, starting to stand up at the same time that Renny tilted her head listening. Louis merely raised an eyebrow and Andrew leaned forward, chin resting on his hands. _Am I the only who cares?_ "Are you suggesting that what we did to that man _benefitted him?"_

He felt a hand suddenly grab at his sleeve, and looked down to see Komui had grabbed ahold of him. The Chinese man had irritatingly silent throughout the entire encounter. But looking down at Komui, he realized that he looked extremely pale. _He hates this too,_ Bak reminded himself, _but he can't say anything._ "Bak," his voice was strained, "Sit, down," he said very carefully.

Bak hesitated for a moment, before doing as he was told.

Leverrier stared down at Bak "That is exactly what I'm suggesting," he said coldly. The silence that followed in the room was like that of the uninhabited artic. The silence continued for almost a full minute before Leverrier continued to talk, as if he hadn't just said one of the cruelest things he'd ever said.

"Exorcists are tools. But tools are only any good when they are whole and unbroken. By giving Exorcist's the same abilities as Yu Kanda, we would have an extreme advantage in this war!" The Inspector spoke passionately, but all Bak could hear was venom spewing from his mouth.

"What advantage," Bak roared back. "The time and money it would take would far out-way any benefit!" If he had to argue with statistics, so be it, but it wasn't going to happen damn it! "We don't have any dead Exorcists to make Second Exorcists out of either! Even if we did, it would take years to make bodies for them! Not to mention the fact it would take even longer for them to learn how to use the innocence again! Their Sync rate would be unstable at best; as would anybody who we forced into the program! Look at Alma!"

The Inspector spoke more calmly, "Look at Kanda. He is successful. Thanks to your family. And that is why you, Mr. Chang, will be heading this experiment," Leverrier jabbed a finger at the Chinese man.

" _Me_?" Bak pointed to himself to make sure that he was being heard correctly. What was _wrong_ with this man? Was he not making himself clear? There was no way in hell he as doing this! He would never do something like that to an Exorcist.

He was not his mother; he was not his father. He wouldn't - _couldn't_ \- do that to anybody.

"Your family's spell is what made the regenerative ability possible in the first place, isn't it?" Bak was silent; it was true. He cursed his family mentally for putting him in this position. "And the Second Exorcist program wouldn't have been possible without that ability."

"…Yes," Bak admitted, staring down and once again cursing God, Leverrier and everybody else who had put him in this position. "But-" he tried.

"Then why shouldn't you head this experiment?"

Because it was immoral. It was terrible. It was something that only the devil would suggest. None of those arguments would hold up against Leverrier though. Bak struggled for words, struggled for a way out, "We…lost all of information regarding the regenerative ability during Alma's rampage," he tried to reason with Leverrier. "The Second Exorcist wouldn't succeed without it."

"Then you will rebuild the information," Leverrier said calmly.

"From scratch?" Bak demanded, "That would take years! We would be better suited in building them better equipment," He protested.

"We don't need to build from scratch," Leverrier said coldly. "We already have a working model; you can use that as a base to rebuild."

For a moment, Bak didn't understand at all. No, it was more actuate to say that he just didn't want to understand what was being asked of him. His words were slow, deliberate, "You want me…to use Kanda…to rebuild the regenerative power… _to make more Second Exorcists?_ " Bak questioned, voice raising several octaves.

"Yes," Leverrier smiled as if Bak were a particularly slow child who had grasped a very simple concept "That is precisely what I want."

"I won't do it!" Bak slapped the desk, teetering on the edge of fury and disbelief.

There was no way he would do that to Kanda. They had asked enough of Kanda – they had asked enough every Exorcist in the Order! _How could this be happening?_

"You will do it," Leverrier said coldly. "And you will start as soon as you were able."

"According to who!" Bak demanded. "You?" He growled. The Inspector couldn't make him; he was powerful yes, but only because he reported directly to the pope. It was Komui who held power of the science divisions; he was the Chief for a reason.

"He's right, I won't approve it," Komui said quietly. His jaw was clenched, and his body language screamed that he'd like to strangle Leverrier right there and then. But he was much calmer in his words that Bak.

"You don't have to approve it," Leverrier said with a very distinctive smirk that screamed he had been waiting for Komui to say just that. He slid a letter out of his pocket and placed it on the table.

For a moment, the two men could just stare at the unopened envelope.

"That is the pope's seal." Bak said quietly after a few minutes, feeling every ounce of defiance he had leave him. They had lost the battle, and the war all at once.

"Yes," Leverrier took a seat for the first time since the start of the meeting. A king taking his place among peasants, those who could only bow down to his will. "The pope wants this holy war to be done and over with. He has approved _any_ means, that _I_ deem necessary."

Bak swallowed. "You can't be serious," He breathed, no longer sure what to do. Nobody could disobey the pope. The Vatican supplied nearly all of the Order's funding; and the rules they imposed were clear; _you cannot disobey the church_. Not unless you wanted something terrible to happen to you.

He looked over at Komui, to see if there would be any support. The other scientist was silent, and Bak realized he was thinking about what would happen to his sister if he fought this order.

"I am deadly serious."

Bak was alone. He had no choice.

 _You do what you have to do._

"Kanda will never agree to it," Bak said forcefully. "I won't do it without his permission." Damn the pope. Damn them all.

"You leave Kanda to me," Leverrier's smile returned to his face, and Bak could only pray that Kanda would be smart enough to see through whatever deception that the bastard had planned.

 _You people always do._

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 _Author's note: Please review._


	5. Reopened Being Played

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray man. I assure you, if I did, I would not be writing fan-fiction.

Summary: The Second Exorcist plan was closed after the Alma Karma incident and Kanda has long since buried his pain under a mask of sheer unpleasantness. But when things become desperate, and the Order considers reopening the Second Exorcist program, Kanda might have to reopen old wounds to protect his friends from becoming victims of the Second Exorcist program themselves.

Pairings: Lavi/Kanda, minor Allen/Lenalee, Marie/Miranda

Rated: M for language and some sexual content in later chapters.

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Chapter five: Reopened: Being Played

 _The air smelled funny, and the room was heavy with the mist that rolled off the birthing pits. It would be easy for a CROW to hide, but that didn't matter. He'd found Alma; everything felt light, even the heavy man on his back. "Alma!" He yelled, at the same time he heard Alma hollering gleefully, just as relieved to see Kanda._

 _"_ _Yu! You're alright!_

 _Kanda took a step forward, hearing a soft sound, like he'd stepped into a puddle of water. He glanced down; and that was when he noticed the wine color splatter on the ground by his feet. Huge pools of it dotted the space between him and Alma. "Huh…" His eyes traced the ground, eyes not quite comprehending what he was seeing. A body. An arm. A body. Leg. Body. Fingers. Body._

 _Bodies everywhere_

 _The mist had to be covering up even more._

 _Then…that smell in the air was blood?_

 _"_ _Al…Alma, did you do this?" he asked, shifting his foot when it dawned on him what he was standing in was blood. He glanced down and was horrified to see it was one of the scientist's – one of the nicer one's who had shown him a picture book of old Japanese weaponry. He shifted his eyes so he was looking over at Alma's legs. That same gory red was painting Alma's calves and thigh's. Of course he'd done it; it was a stupid question._

 _"_ _What's going on?" Marie asked, but Kanda shushed him._

 _He could see an arm floating in the mist behind Alma. "What's that behind you?" He whispered, as more of the mist cleared._

 _The first thing his brain recognized was that there was even more blood dripping down a sharp object. Another body. Only it wasn't a body just then; the fingers were twitching still, and he could still see the light fading rapidly from its eyes. There was an all too familiar smile on that face, with bloody bond hair._

 _"_ _Is that Edgar?" Kanda's voice was flat, the complete opposite of the screaming horror that had coiled in his chest._

 _"_ _It's good to see you again, Yu," Alma smiled, and Kanda felt the entire world go still. Even Edgar's fingers had stopped twitching and the mist had frozen in it's place. For a moment that felt like eternity, quiet filled the room, except for Kanda's, Alma's, and Marie's breathing._

 _Kanda watched as a smile drifted across Alma's face. "I have to kill you now," he said, and Kanda stared at the tears drifting down Alma's face. Even as he watched the tears running down Alma's face, his body started to move, dragging Marie across the room as soon as he could._

Alma, stop it! _He wanted his mouth to form the words, but nothing happened._ Please, I'll take you away. You hate hurting people! _He wanted to scream the words at Alma. His friend wasn't the type of person to hurt a fly._

What did they do to you?

 _Kanda grunted as something hard hit his chest, and he felt Marie let go of his back. He was about to yell at the big man to get out of the way when he felt a searing pain in his left arm as it was severed from his body._

Kanda sat up abruptly, gasping for air. His heartbeat thumped out a hard, frantic rhythm against his ribs. Kanda stared up at the pale gray wall, devoid of any blood. Another dream then…He'd been having a lot of those lately. He swallowed, trying to push away the bloody image of Alma's face away. He raised a hand up to his face, watching the sun trace shadows across his skin. There was no blood, no missing limbs or bits of white bone sticking out of a gaping hole. He flexed his hand; it was perfect, no pain, no indication that Alma had just cut off his arm. _How…could it feel so real?_ He shook his head; he was sure there was some sort of scientific explanation. He was equally sure that if he asked somebody, they'd try to explain it; though most of it would probably just go over his head.

It didn't matter though. He'd never liked sitting still and listening to lectures anyway; besides, he didn't care why these dreams felt so real. He just wanted the dreams to stop feeling so real; or better yet, he wanted them to stop all together.

There was a hard knock on the door, and Kanda groaned, rolling out of bed snagging one of the button-up shirts off the coat hanger. He pulled it on over his shoulders with one hand while tugging open the door with a smooth motion. He lowered his eyes and was extremely displeased to find a Finder standing in front of his door.

He recognized him almost immediately; _It's the same damn one!_ His lips turned up into a snarl. "What the hell are you doing here?" Kanda snapped at the Finder, while buttoning up the shirt. The finder, for his part, looked a little like he'd been told to talk to the devil himself.

""Er..." The Finder in question looked more than a little uncomfortable at having been sent back to bother Kanda again. Particularly since he had already been warned – most explicitly – by Kanda not to bother the samurai again. His shoulder was still throbbing from having been thrown into the table.

"Uh...the...um...er...Inspector," he stammered, a look of fear entered the Finder's eyes Kanda's eyes started to glow with angry fire. "The i-inspector w-wants to s-see you a-a-again, p-please d-don't h-hurt me!" Kanda watched – mostly pissed, but also partly amused as the Finder turned his back and actually fled down the hall. _Dumbass. He left his back completely open,_ if Kanda had been more pissed, he probably would have taken advantage of the Finder's stupidity.

Though he was plenty pissed. Just not at the Finder.

But there was a bigger fish who was trying to summon him. _That damn fucking bastard._ His hand strayed to Mugen as he let loose a slew of curses and profanities, striding down the hall. The few that were awake hugged the walls to avoid his wrath.

That fucking bastard, always summoning him like a goddamn dog, always demanding everything and anything of those in the Order. The dark thoughts continued to plague him, as if they were storm clouds as he stalked down the hall. His attitude had improved very little since his conversation with Leverrier almost two weeks ago, and his conversations with Bak had not helped his mood.

The door flung open with a _bang_ , shaking the hinges. "Kanda," the Inspector greeted with a smile. "How are you doing today?"

Kanda had less patience than usual today for the man. "What do you want?" He snapped, cursing in irritation as he grabbed the chair and sat himself down – he knew he'd never find out about what the Inspector wanted if didn't sit down.

"Why such a sour face, Kanda?" The inspector smirked, leaning on one elbow. _Conceited son of a bitch._ Kanda couldn't help but think that the Inspector looked extraordinarily pleased – particularly if you took into account how close to Kanda was to killing the man.

"I asked you what you wanted?" Kanda snapped in irritation. If he had been dragged out of bed just so the man could piss him off….

No. That wouldn't be the reason…that was never a good enough reason. There was only one reason Leverrier would call him here. Kanda just wanted to hear it from his mouth.

"Well," Leverrier continued to sneer, still looking far too happy for Kanda's taste. "I just thought that I would keep you…updated of the conversation we had," the words were polite, but pitched in such away that even somebody as oblivious as Kanda could tell they were meant to provoke.

Of course there was. That didn't stop the denial though. "There is nothing to update," Kanda snarled, immediately enraged despite knowing that was exactly what Leverrier was going for. The smile never left Leverrier's face. "Why the fuck are you smiling like that?" Kanda demanded.

"There has been an update," Leverrier repeated pleasantly, and Kanda's hand shot out, seizing the Inspector by his shirt collar and dragging him unceremoniously across the desk until there noses were inches apart.

He was sick of the man's games. He wanted a confirmation Goddamn it; and he was going to get one.

"What. Update." Kanda growled, lips pulling back to reveal an almost wolf like teeth. He was a predator, and Leverrier the prey, a mouse. He was a mouse whose ego had gotten a little too big.

The mouse said nothing. "I asked what fucking update!" He roared when Leverrier didn't answer immediately, every muscle in his body tensing as he restrained himself from slaughtering Leverrier, and chopping him up into bloody, bite-sized pieces.

"We've decided to reopen investigations on the second Exorcist program." Leverrier's voice was calm, as if talking about walk through the park. For a moment, Kanda didn't believe he could possibly be hearing correctly. There was no way that Bak or Komui would have allowed that to happen. Besides which, nobody would have been _stupid_ enough to try and invoke Kanda's wrath like this. Nobody except Leverrier, that is.

…No, he knew it was true. He'd known it from the second he'd seen Bak yesterday, that everything was fucked up and they were going to rope some poor bastard into their plans.

He just didn't want to believe it.

"You're a fucking liar!" Kanda snarled, tightening his grip on Leverer's collar. There was no way that this was actually happening.

"It's already been agreed upon," Leverrier said, and Kanda released the man, trying to absorb everything that had happened. _It's like another nightmare._ Only worse, because he was an adult; and there was still nothing that he could do about it unless he killed Leverrier. It was an option that was becoming more and more appealing as the moments ticked by.

The only thing that stopped Kanda was the fact that something seemed odd. _Why the hell is he telling me this?_ Kanda wondered, mouth turning down into a frown as he barely managed to control his rage. The inspector had to know that Kanda would seek brutal retaliation for this news…they wouldn't tell him unless they absolutely had to.

 _What the fuck do they want from me…_

He narrowed his eyes into slits. "Why are you telling me about this?" He asked, in the calmest voice he could manage. Even with his _calm_ voice, his voice dripped with bloodlust.

Perhaps he ought to spend more time meditating.

That stupid smirk didn't leave Leverrier's face, and Kanda felt his lips curve into a snarl. His hands grabbed at Leverrier's collar again, despite his subconscious screaming at him to keep control. "Why are you telling me this!" Kanda roared the question this time. "Tell me now, or I'll kill you!" He shouted, eyes darkening.

"Link," Leverrier's smirk didn't leave his face, but suddenly Kanda was being pulled off the director with surprisingly strong hands. _Fuck those damn CROWS._ He pulled his lips back into a snarl, giving a sharp twist, but found himself being suddenly slammed into the desk anyhow. He cursed as the edge of the desk dug into his ribcage, and he let out a low roar as his arm was twisted forcefully behind his back.

 _Fuck._ Damn that Link! "Get off!" He growled at Leverrier's dog, twisting and turning forcefully. The young CROW held on grimly though, through each buckle and carefully executed twist that the demon of an Exorcist attempted in order to break free with. Twice, Kanda thought he might have been able to shake off the bastard, but Link was just as used to fighting as Kanda was.

He continued to curse and twist furiously as the bastard held him over the desk, long after he realized that he wasn't going to throw off the CROW. He growled quietly to himself, promising he would make it up the CROW; during sparing practice.

Let the CROW watch the Moyashi with a broken leg!

It wasn't until Kanda had stopped squirming, and the only sound in the room was harsh breathing - both from a tired Kanda and a worn Link.

Leverrier sat back in his chair once he was sure that Kanda had calmed some, leaning forward with his chin resting on his hands. Leverrier spoke; very calm despite the fact that Kanda had just threatened to kill him. Link was there after all. "After subject 'Alma Karma's' rampage, most of our material on the subject of regenerative abilities was lost," Kanda could vaguely remember a smashed up lab that he'd seen after Alma, when he'd been looking for somebody to help Marie…beakers shattered and liquids running over paperwork. "We need a chance to help replicate some of the data," Leverrier said calmly.

More silence as Kanda tried to understand the information, and a sour taste filled his mouth.

The ticking of the grandfather clock in the back of the room overshadowed even the sound of breathing, and the tension hovered in the room like a low fog.

And slowly, a low, dark chuckle filled the room, quiet and unpleasant laugh. The tension in the room thickened. "And you think I'm going to supply you with this 'data?" Kanda asked, a dark glint decorating his eyes.

Oh. No. Fuck that; maybe the Order could do what it wanted, but Kanda was _not going to fucking help them._

Leverrier tilted his head to the side, that bureaucratic smile stretching even further across his lips. "I think you will," he said.

"You can go fuck yousel-" Kanda started angrily, but Leverrier's voice rose above his.

"I think you will, or else, we will be forced to blindly experiment on another Exorcist while trying to replicate the process" and Kanda felt a sharp jolt in his chest. The inspector's voice rose even higher, "Whom would you like to volunteer for the job? How about Lenalee?"

 _"_ _Kanda!" he grunted, hearing Lenalee's voice. He ignored her words; he'd already told her to go, there was no reason for her to continue to talk to him. "Kanda, you_ will _follow us afterward, won't you?" She asked._

 _About four seconds of silence followed. He could practically taste the girl's irritation at his silence. "ANSWER ME," she snapped at him, and he grimaced at her. God, what an annoying woman; he wondered how Komui put up with his sister._

Because she is important to him, _he reminded himself. It was such a stupid reason to put up with somebody. But it was the only reason somebody would put with another person so difficult._

 _Maybe that was why she put up with Kanda. He shrugged off the thought quickly._

That would kill Komui, to have his sister become an experiment. "Or perhaps Allen Walker?"

 _"_ _Get off of me, Moyashi," he said, trying to jerk his hand off, but failing much to his surprise. This kid was strong; stronger than he looked. At least, physically. Based on that look in his eyes, he was just as soft hearted as Alma. He had that look of somebody who was too kind, too trusting, too damn naïve._

 _"_ _My name is Allen," the boy said quietly, in a tone that was far too polite. Especially taking into account thy boy's obvious dislike for the nickname. He felt his lip turn in a small smirk._

 _"_ _Hah," He snorted. "I'll remember that if you're still alive in a month," he sneered. He growled as the young man squeezed his hand harder, and his eyes narrowed. No. He'd never call this guy by his name. One month…one year; a decade._

 _This brat was always going to be 'moyashi.'_

 _He was too much like Alma. He was too damn polite, even when he clearly wanted to say something harsher. "You're gonna die before your time kid."_

 _Kanda wasn't going to get close enough to watch this kid crash and burn either._

That kid was going to die young. But even this seemed excessively young. "What about Bookman and his apprentice?"

 _"_ _Look out Yu!" Kanda grunted hearing a certain redhead yell, as if he cared. Why the hell did this bastard care? "That thing's armor is really…" felt a vain throb through his head as jerked Mugen forward, deadly blade cutting through the hardened armor with only the slightest resistance. "…Tough?" He glanced back to see the redhead looking surprised._

 _Why the fuck did the bastard look surprised? Lavi had seen Kanda fight before. Didn't the bastard think Kanda could handle himself? He felt that vain in his forehead throb even harder. "Hey, you…" he grumbled, only turning his head slightly. "If you ever call me by my name again, I'll cut you!" He snarled._

 _He didn't need anybody worrying about him._

He didn't need to be worrying about anybody either. But Leverrier was making him worry.

 _Those idiots…_

The Inspector leaned closer, so Kanda could see his face and how serious he was. He was no longer smiling. "Who would you like to volunteer for the job, if not you, Yu Kanda?"

 _…_ _damn it I shouldn't have to._

Kanda bit back the thousand profanities that sprung to his lips; they would have made him feel better, but nothing else. It might provoke Leverrier to do something drastic – even more so than he was already planning. His jaw clenched and he looked down. "Fine." He growled.

 _…_ _Fuck. This is insane. You don't even like them!_

And that smile appeared yet again across the Inspector's face. "Good," He said, and signaled to Link to let up Kanda. "Use the Arc to report to the Asian Branch tomorrow. Bak and Komui will start tomorrow," Leverrier said as he started to exit the room.

The Inspector paused as he exited the room, back to Kanda. "I'm surprised Kanda," he said, voice very calm. "After the way you butchered Alma Karma as a child, I would have thought you'd sell out your new friends in a heartbeat…I guess some people just mean more than others," and those words echoed long after the two inspectors left the room.

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Authors note: please review. Also please note, that after this week, I will be changing the summary.


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